John Paul O'Shea (Cork North-West, Fine Gael)
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12. To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Justice and Equality the measures that have been taken to ensure additional Gardaí enter the system in 2025 and 2026, which will in turn address shortages in the Mallow, Charleville, Kanturk and Macroom areas of Cork north west; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [53246/25]

Jim O'Callaghan (Dublin Bay South, Fianna Fail)
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Getting more Gardaí on our streets to prevent crime is my first priority as Minister for Justice.

This Government is committed to ensuring that An Garda Síochána has the resources it needs to fight crime and a strengthened, well-resourced Garda organisation is central to this policy.

At the end of August, the total Garda personnel strength stood at over 18,000, which included 14,369 Garda Members, 3,494 Staff, and 296 Reserves.

I will continue to support An Garda Síochána to increase this number further so that we can see more Gardaí assigned all across the country, including the north western areas of Cork county.

Significant measures have been made to boost recruitment and retention including by increasing the Garda trainee allowance to €354 per week; increasing the age of entry from 35 to 50; and raising the mandatory retirement age to 62.

The Garda recruitment campaign in February attracted over 6,700 applications which is significant given the economy is at full employment. The second competition for this year is currently underway and closes today (9 October). This will ensure that there is a strong pipeline of recruits into An Garda Síochána and will enable the Commissioner to deliver an effective, highly-visible policing service.

149 probationer Gardaí attested in March, 120 attested in June, and 154 attested in August, giving a total of 423 so far this year, with one further attestation scheduled for November.

The Recruitment and Training Capacity Group, chaired by a Deputy Secretary General in my Department, was established to support the achievement of increased recruitment. The Group has kept me informed on actions being taken to maximise future intakes and to ensure that recruitment processes can be as effective as possible.

This group’s final report has been published just last week and is available on my Department’s website. It includes a range of further measures to support recruitment and retention and the achievement of the Programme for Government target of 5,000 new Gardaí over the next five years.